Now comes word that the real price of Nelson's vote was a hunting trip to Nebraska by a New York city guy who is more comfortable with street vendors and cab drivers than gun-toting hunters. Democrat Chuck Schumer, the vote-counter on Reid's leadership team, made the trek last month.

According to Politico, the senator from Brooklyn woke up early the morning of Nov. 8, put on a blaze-orange hunting vest and hat, got a crash course in gun safety and immediately bonded with the retrievers and pointers that accompanied his hunting team.

“They were just amazing,” he said. “I always thought hunting dogs were just for companionship.”